


Champion Circuit

by Kharasma



Category: Tron (1982), Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
Genre: Crossover, Friendship, Gen, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-14
Updated: 2013-11-14
Packaged: 2018-01-01 13:47:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1044679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kharasma/pseuds/Kharasma
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's the night after the Cybug invasion. Ralph and Vanellope are gearing up for their first trip out.</p><p>Unfortunately, Ralph has a furious security program to answer to.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Champion Circuit

A tiny president and a large wrecker stood in the plugs to their respective games at the appointed time, exactly two minutes after closing time at Litwak's. Somehow, despite the interference of trafic and their wildly different lines of sight, they spotted each other almost immediately.

And that was then the race was on. Ralph used his long legs and big arms to his advantage, eager to catch the pesky kid, and Vanellope danced just out of his reach, laughing and pretending to break a sweat. She didn't teleport---just to make it slightly less unfair for Ralph---but in the end Vanellope won the chase, announcing her victory with a playful tug at her friend's wild hair.

"Hey Ralph, did you see it? Did you see that last race?"

"Uh...part of it. Felix kept chasing me down the building, couldn't get too high."

"Did you see the end, though? You know, when I swerved 'round that corner, knocked Rancis and Taffyta straight into the sundae on the last turn, and once again triumphed as Sugar Rush's greatest president in history?"

"Well, yeah. Caught it just as I was headed over the edge. You're one ruthless rascal, kid."

"Not totally! That was the last race of the day, so I hit reverse and pulled them out. Might've had a bit too much fun with the cream, though. Taffyta'll need some extra time cleaning up."

"I thought you were playing nice! I mean...what those kids did was pretty rotten, but you're supposed to be their benevolent ruler."

"I am! That's just how we tootsie-roll. You should've seen how she set the cherry bomb off under me on the bridge this morning. Took me forever to pull my cart out of the sticky buns," Vanellope laughed, rolling her eyes and poking her pal in the shoulder.

The two of them eventually settled on a bench near Frogger's game, so absorbed in their exchange of harmlessly humorous insults and happy tales of their day that they failed to notice an approaching character until he stood right in front of them.  He stood silently for a minute, mouth pressed in a faint line as he observed the pair's antics. After a milicycle's worth of waiting to catch their attention as their heads turned, he decided to speed things up with curt nod.

"Greetings, Wreck-it Ralph. It's been quite a few cycles since I saw you last," said the old program. He still scrutinized Ralph to look for signs of the massive shift in behavior that he'd heard about, but he wouldn't be deterred for long. There was an issue to discuss.

"Uh...Ralph, why's this guy all inside out?" said the girl, folding her arms over Ralph's shoulder. She hadn't seen anyone as grey as this character since Turbo---at least this guy's teeth didn't look like he'd eaten too many lemon pops. It was really the lines that looked different. There were glowing  blue circuits plastered all over him, just like what she'd seen on the way up from Sugar Rush.

"'This guy' is Tron, from the game Tron. He's been around as long as Felix and me," Ralph introduced, his smile starting to falter in the face of Tron's stone-cold expression. Yeah, they'd never been the best of friends, but this meant trouble, didn't it?  "Hey...uh, Tron, did you hear about what happened last night?"

That was very definitely a slight guilty expression on Ralph's face. Oh---right. That had to be the issue. And just as easily as flipping a light switch, Tron's expression shifted from controlled neutrality to the type of fury that explodes right out. These were the thoughts he'd been storing away for the past day of worry.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I have! You went Turbo, Ralph. Did you even consider what would've happened to your game?"

Ralph winced. "Er...no, because I didn't think anything would happen to it! I just thought I'd visit Hero's Duty while the arcade was closed, get a medal, and come right back to shove it in their faces. Wasn't my fault that the cybugs and me got thrown off to Sugar Rush in a pointy tin can. But look, everything's fine and nobody got hurt."

"You still shouldn't have been there! At the very least, you should have left Sugar Rush when you landed. You knew the arcade was opening soon! Fix-it Felix Jr. was out of order thanks to you, and you know what could've happened."

That finally sparked a protest from the previously silent Vanellope. In a flash, she'd re-emerged on Ralph's shoulder, leaning forward to give herself better leverage. She pulled herself up to her full height, planting her hands on her hips as she glared.

"No one speaks to Ralph like that except me, got it? Yeah, what he did wasn't cool to the Nicelanders. But you know what wasn't cool to him? Getting treated like dirt! Sure, he rolls in it and he stinks like it most of the time, but that didn't mean they had to keep him in that dump! All he wanted was someone to like him...and I should know, 'cause we both wanted that."

Vanellope's brow furrowed, pressed right over her eyes in an expression of pure anger.

"You know what he did by going Turbo? When he stuck around, he met me. We got on each other's nerves for a while---guess maybe I shouldn't have taken that medal from him. Whoops." Vanellope leaned toward Ralph and smiled apologeticaly, silently cheering when he rolled his eyes. A second of the schmoopiness was enough, and then she was right back to her lecture.

"But  you know what happened after that? We got to know each other. He smiled. And I finally had someone worthy of my highest medal of honor!"

Vanellope  glared at Tron as if daring him to speak, then very pointedly reached into the collar of Ralph's shirt. Her fist snagged the pink ribbon she knew was there, and with a careful flip she presented the text on the heart cookie for this weirdo to see.

_You're my hero._

With that point made, Vanellope continued. "Ralph caught Turbo. Turbo's the real bad guy, the one you guys've hated for years, right?  And yeah...I helped a little." That prompted a gentle nudge from Ralph. "Okay, a lot. But if Ralph hadn't helped me race, you know where I'd be? I wouldn't be anywhere."

Vanellope leaned closer, allowing Tron to see her worry over what could've been. "There'd be nothing left. 'Cause the Cybugs would've gobbled me right up. But you know what? Ralph didn't let that happen. He jumped right into Diet Cola Mountain, ready to unleash the almighty explosion of Mentos against the bugs. It would've been game over for him, and did he care? No!  He gave up everything for me. Well...I'm an awesome driver so I saved him, but he would've done it."

A flicker of guilt crossed Tron's face alongside a spark of memory. Understanding dawned as he realized what exactly Ralph had done in Sugar Rush. "So you know what? Ralph's a hero. All the games are still here. Turbo's gone, everyone remembers me, Sugar Rush is cool again, and no one's game is getting unplugged. So lay off!" Vanellope finished with a fine diplomatic gesture of sticking her tongue out, then stubbornly sat back and wrapped her arm around Ralph's shoulder as far as it would go. Ralph responded by leaning his head toward her just slightly, sagging in gratitute.

By the end of Vanellope's little rant, Tron was doing something strange. He was gazing in awe at the pair, carefully re-evaluating the information he'd been carrying all day.

"Ralph, who is your friend?"

"She's---"

"I'm President Vanellope von Schweetz, the best of the best in Sugar Rush. King C---Turbo had me glitched out for a while, but I'm back and better than ever! And Ralph happens to be Sir Stinkbrain of Sugar Rush, my right-hand man, so you'd better leave him alone."

"...wait, I'm Sir Stinkbrain? Since when?" Ralph whispered out of the corner of his mouth.

"Since now," Vanellope hissed back, pointedly elbowing him in the ear.

"Well...it's a pleasure to meet you, President Vanellope. But the two of you found Turbo?" Tron asked, undeterred from this subject. He approached it with something of a laser focus, unable to keep the urgency from his voice.

"Yeah. He was hiding in Sugar Rush. Warped his code  to disguise himself as King Candy, tossed taffy around and acted all sweet and sugary on the surface," Ralph growled.

Tron shook his head---his memory banks weren't producing very much to go on. "I did see a small king from that game, but he only emerged once. Countless cycles ago. If he really was Turbo, I can guess why he didn't like to socialize."

"Oh, trust me, he was terrible. He made everyone in Sugar Rush forget me, made himself all-powerful, and made me a glitch!"

"He corrupted your programming?" Tron asked. By now, his expression reflected guilt and fury. Turbo had done terrible things to that game and he'd never even investigated.

"Yup. Wanted all the power for himself. But I knew I could be okay again if I could cross the finish line. 'King Candy' did everything he could to keep me from the race---I only got to race 'cause Ralph helped," Vanellope said, fondly leaning on the side of Ralph's neck. "And then King Candy tried to take me out, and I glitched him, and we saw Turbo, and oh man is he ugly!"

"A sad little man to be sure," Ralph added. "But then a Cybug got him and he warped into this huge bug monster. But we beat him---he's gone."

All the while, the fury had slowly seeped out of Tron's expression. He now looked incredibly guilty, and it was with a sad sigh that he addressed the pair again. "I'm sorry. If all of that is true, I was out of line. President Vanellope, you're correct: Ralph's a hero to the entire arcade."

An afterimage of a laughing User fighting at his side flashed through Tron's memory, and he smiled. "It takes courage to do what you did. Both of you. Turbo was the best racer I've ever known, and it's become apparent that he was the most conniving corrupt program as well. But you triumphed."

He looked up at the pair for a moment, waited to see that they'd heard, then continued.

"If I'd known that Turbo was still out there, I wouldn't have rested until he was caught. But...Ralph, you've done it. You brought the biggest threat this arcade has ever seen to justice, and you would've sacrified yourself to save a game that wasn't your own. Illogical, but honorable. Your User would be proud."

"Not that I need anyone's approval, but...yeah, that sounds pretty nice," Ralph admitted, turning up a hand to give Vanellope a vastly uneven high-five. She responded enthusiatically, undeterred that her 'slap' was just a tiny poke on his palm.  After a beat, Ralph continued. "I've got my best friend. I'm good."

Tron then turned his attention to Vanellope. "And Vanellope, what Turbo did to you was one of the worst crimes I know of. If Ralph hadn't already derezzed him, I'd do it myself. But you're safe now, and there's a whole arcade of people who I'm sure are waiting to meet you. You've never left Sugar Rush, right?"

"Nah. I couldn't when I was a glitch, remember? But you think they wanna meet me?" Vanellope asked, looking hopeful.

"What did I tell you?" Ralph said, looking at Vanellope like he was her proud parent. "Everyone loves an adorable winner."

"And I'm the best one there is!" Vanellope nodded, gently bumping her tiny fist against Ralph's shoulder.

At that response, they could see Tron's lips quirk up. "I'm sure you're a winner. But I wouldn't say you're the champion of the arcade just yet."

"What do you mean? Turbo's gone! I'm the best racer, right?"

"In Sugar Rush, yes. But Sugar Rush isn't the only racing game in this arcade, Vanellope," Tron explained to her, an almost apologetic smile crossing his face.

"...what? You mean there's more racers?" Vanellope didn't seem disappointed. On the contrary, she was bouncing from bench to floor to pillar with an expression that could only be called gleeful. "I love a challenge! Where do I meet 'em?"

Ralph scratched his head in thought, lightly rocking back against the bench. He hadn't actually thought of that for a while. "I hear Sonic's got a new racing game. Then there's the Daytona track. Those guys don't get out much. Guess they got tired of kids from the baseball game trying to take their wheels."

"I thought I told them to stop," Tron muttered, shaking his head from side to side. 

"That's so cool! So that's two. Where else do I race?" Vanellope was already looking for the entrance to this mysterious Daytona world. Ralph hovered worriedly, ready to reel her in...and Tron just smiled.

"My game has races as well."

"You're a racer?" That seized Vanellope's attention. She surged forward, zooming over to stand on a nearby ledge so she could look properly at this weird circuit dude who was actually a racer like her. "Huh. You don't look like one."

"I can assure you that I am." Tron insisted. "Lightcycle races are the most popular game on m Grid. We race in vehicles that leave a trail of light in our wake, and we're supposed to use those to trap the other racers. Whoever crashes into someone else's trail loses, so it's a dangerous game. You need fast reflexes."

"Speedy, bright, and dangerous? Sounds like my kinda game! Who's the champ I've gotta beat?"

And at that, Tron truly smiled.  He never really discussed anything but work and glitch-hunting with the programs from other games, did he? Maybe that would have to change. "I'm the champion video game warrior on my Grid."

"What, 'cause you're the Tron of Tron?" Vanellope asked, giving the sign above his plug a pointed look. "Well, I guess that makes sense."

Tron crouched just slightly to follow the girl's gaze. "I suppose so."

"So that means we've gotta race!" said Vanellope, who was quite suddenly waving a hand with which to seize Tron's. "You're a champ, I'm a champ, we'll see who's on top!"

Tron looked alarmed by this idea. "Didn't we just discuss the dangers of visiting other games?"

"Yeah, yeah, but it's all good! Ralph never would've caught Turbo if he hadn't come along. And we'd do it after hours, when it can't bother the gamers."

"You're right. But there's still the risk of derezzing to consider.  How dangerous is Sugar Rush to an outside program?"

"Oh, not very. When it's not crawling with Cybugs all that'll happen is that you'll get thrown in a pie. I got knocked around by Vanellope's kart and nothing happened. I heard Felix and Calhoun fell into some Nesquik sand, they didn't do too bad."

"Yeah! No one dies, not even when they totally bug me," Vanellope agreed readily. "At worst they're a little muddy. But it's chocolate mud, so they can lick it right off and have a snack."

"Stranger and stranger," Tron whispered in disbelief. "Well, if you're sure, I'll have to pay a visit to Sugar Rush."

"You've never been around sugar, have you Tron?"

"No, I can't say I have."

"Then you've got so much to see! Ralph'll even bake you a cart," Vanellope promised for her friend. "The one he made me was AWESOME."

"Why can't he bake his own cart?" muttered Ralph. "You don't know Tron. They fear him over there. He's the best at everything. Kinda like their Felix."

"Because, dummy, they don't have sugar there! I bet he'd think fish oil on his cart was cool."

"Maybe it'll make the tires faster? You know, oil. Lubricant."

"Oil makes you skid! C'mon Ralph, every racer knows that."

"Need I remind you that I'm not a racer?"

The argument contined for several moments more, leaving Tron baffled by the behavior.  He knew programs from differing grids sometimes had conflicts caused by the incompatibility of their memory banks, but he'd  spent enough nights as a patron of Tapper's to know that not too many people calling themselves friends presented this many arguments.

"Okay. Show me the best way to 'bake' a racing kart," Tron offered---but it seemed his input was no longer needed. Ralph and Vanellope were now in the process of calling each other a series of alternate names that Tron understood to be fairly crude, but they were laughing at each other.

"Uh, yeah. Sure!" Vanellope, at least, had heard Tron and agreed, speeding right over to the security program. "And that means you'll let me drive a licycle now, right?"

"Lightcycle," Tron corrected gently. "And I've told you, it's too dangerous. If you crash, what will happen to Sugar Rush?"

"So? Not gonna happen. We're both too good to crash."

"It's still a risk I'm uncomfortable with taking."

"Oh, we're gonna take it.  We have to. You can't tell me about cool light bikes and not let me drive one!"

That pleading look in Vanellope's eyes meant that Tron was truly caught, didn't it? That, and she was spirited enough that she'd sneak in if he didn't accompany her. There was no option but to concede. "All right. You'll get the chance. But I believe it would be safer to visit Sugar Rush first."

"Oh, I see how this is. Giving me the home field advantage for the first round, huh? You're pretty confident. But you're on, electroman!" And then Vanellope had hopped up to seize Tron's hand, already pulling her new companion in the direction of her game. "Let's go. Right now. And don't disappoint me, I want a good fight!"

"You certainly don't waste a microcycle. And you don't have to worry about me doing my best, I have a title to defend," Tron laughed, still slightly overloaded by the whirlwind of changing data around him. So many views changed in just that conversation, and now there was a young racer dragging him off to play with her. What was he getting himself into? He was grateful that the girl was no longer angry with him, but things were moving so fast.

"Hey, wait for me!" Ralph hustled to catch up to the two champions, grinning as he approached the rainbow road. After last night? Maybe it was a good thing that all he had to do tonight was watch a great race.

Time with his best friend, respect from the other arcade-dwellers...life was sweet.

**Author's Note:**

> Wreck-it Ralph director Rich Moore has said he tried but couldn't find a place to fit Tron in the movie, which is a shame. Disney's first and latest movies about video games coming together would've been awesome. But there's an outlet leading to a Tron game in the very back right corner of Game Central as a tribute. The Tron sign is visible in the film when Ralph trips over Q-bert on his way to Hero's Duty. So this was the story of how I think Tron would live in that world.
> 
> ...but mostly I wanted the mental image of Tron and Vanellope racing, because that's adorable.


End file.
